Photolyfe: Robb Wilson

Seven months ago we embarked on our #FeelsLikeFreedom photo contest with O’Neill. After thousands of submissions, we landed on six winners. These six winners–over the course of the next few weeks–will be highlighted and bio’d in Photolyfes.

For those unfamiliar with Photolyfe, it’s an attempt to paint a portrait of a photographer through their images. You know, that old picture’s worth a thousand words chestnut.

Second on our list of photographers to highlight from this Instagram competition is Long Beach’s Robb Wilson. 

Robb was originally born in the Philippines and works as a part-time longshoreman at the Port of Los Angeles and as a father.

“I moved to Long Beach when I was about four-years-old,” Robb tells Stab. “My pops was in the service and was stationed in Manilla when I was born. I’ve lived in LB for most of my life.

“I started shooting around 2009 after I had a back surgery that went wrong, resulting in a long painful recovery where I wasn’t able to surf. My friend Jason Hoffman recommended I purchase a water camera and start taking surf photos. That’s what I did, and it changed my life for the better.

“My friend Kyle Buthman recently directed and produced a short documentary about my story called ‘Still Here,’ which you guys at Stab were kind enough to run on your site.”

1. Describe yourself.

2. Where are you from?

3. What got you into photography?

4. Where do you wish you were right now?

5. What inspires you?

6. Who is your favourite person to photograph?

7. What makes the best photograph? 

8. What’s your favourite weapon?

9. Describe your mood right now?

10. What else should we know about you?